Mel Gibson Speaks Out About "Edited" Voicemails

Mel Gibson has something to say—but this time he’s going to
try to keep his voice down.

Crazy Mel has a new movie to promote, The Beaver, so he’s desperately trying to do some damage
control. First on the list: talking about those infamous voicemails he left ex Oksana
Grigorieva

.

"Who anticipates
being recorded?" Gibson tells Deadline in an epic interview. "Who
could anticipate such a personal betrayal?"

He said most of the
voicemails were taken out of context and he’s really not a homophobe, a racist
and an anti-Semite. Uh, Mel…It’s a little hard to take things like ‘I will kill
you and bury you in a rose garden’ out of context.

He continued, “I've never treated anyone badly or in a discriminatory
way based on their gender, race, religion or sexuality -- period," Gibson
says. "I don't blame some people for thinking that though, from the
garbage they heard on those leaked tapes, which have been edited.

“You have to put it all in the proper context of being in an
irrationally heated discussion at the height of a breakdown, trying to get out
of a really unhealthy relationship. It's one terribly awful moment in time,
said to one person, in the span of one day and doesn't represent what I truly
believe or how I've treated people my entire life."

But regardless of how many times he tries to clear the air,
he knows his reputation may be permanently damaged. Ya think?

"I don't care if I don't act anymore," he says, adding that
he's "beyond" caring whether fans misjudge him. "The whole
experience has been most unfortunate. And so it's not without all the
downside."

"I could easily not act again. It's not a problem. I'm going to
do something now because I want to do it and because it's fun."

He’s had so many f**k ups it’s a little hard to give him the
benefit of the doubt and assume things were taken out of context. Sure, her
reaction to his crazy rants seemed edited, but his craziness on those tapes
were raw—and they were real.

Do you forgive Mel? Do you think it’s fair that his personal
life had such a big affect on his career?